A Thousand Miles Away from You
by Noire Knightmare
Summary: Welcome to Hetalia University, the world's largest online campus. To encourage peace, promote foreign exchange, and broaden the horizons of classmates located overseas, every student has been assigned to another student in a different country to communicate via-Skype. College AU. Human!PrussiaXHuman!Canada.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia. If I did, SO MANY PAIRINGS WOULD BE CANON…but I don't. I also don't own the businesses/franchises mentioned in this fanfiction, so please don't sue me. I'm not sure if this fanfiction idea has already been done, so…yeah.

Regular font indicates the present.

_Italic font indicates writing and/or typing._

_**Bold italic font indicates thought**_

* * *

~Matthew's point-of-view~

"Maple, maple, maple," Matthew muttered beneath his breath distastefully, switching on his bedside lamp and logging onto his laptop. He winced as the bright light reflected painfully off his glasses, temporarily blinding him given how adjusted his eyes were to the darkness that he was previously surrounded by.

He had returned home from a particularly-stressful day working as a medical assistant, only to spend the next few hours cramming for his online mid-term starting next week. The Canadian practically collapsed into bed when satisfied with his mental trauma, yet was unable to stop tossing and turning beneath his red and white-themed blankets since he could have sworn he was forgetting something.

_**Maybe I left my keys in the car? Maybe I forgot to feed Kuma-something? Ugh, it feels like my frontal lobe is exploding-OH MAPLE, MY MEDICAL PAPER!**_

He suddenly lunged forward from his bed, thoroughly scaring his fluffy white cat hogging his covers in the process, as he pulled on his glasses and reached for his computer.

"Sorry, Kuma," Matthew apologized to the cat sprawled on the floor when he recovered from temporary blindness, quickly creating a Word document to begin typing his medical research paper on, as well as opening up an internet tab for the official website for Hetalia Univeristy.

_**Let's just see when the paper is due,**_ He thought, repressing the urge to panic. A few more clicks of his mouse resulted in his violet orbs widening behind his wire-rimmed glasses, as he had stumbled across the webpage pertaining to one of his many online medical classes.

_Xx/xx/xx_

_ -Prepare a 10-page research paper regarding the three main parts of the human brain and their functions. Please include diagrams and a bibliography of reliable reference material. Due date: xx/xx/xx_

"Reliable reference material is a matter of opinion," He murmured sourly, successfully face-planting into his keyboard while mentally cursing in a mixture of English and French given how the paper was due the next day.

_** Can't believe I forgot about it,**_ The bespectacled blonde reflected as he began feverishly typing, the metallic sound of his keyboard echoing throughout his bedroom. _**I mean, I literally just finished cramming for my mid-term regarding the layout and functions of the human brain!**_

To be honest, Matthew Williams had assumed that when he applied for an online university, it would be easy to manage classes, turn in assignments, and get his bachelor's degree while balancing a job to pay rent for his apartment.

Sadly, since he was striving for a bachelor's degree in medical science (histotechnology to be precise), not to mention he was attending Hetalia University, of all places, that was not the case.

It wasn't the material in the class that was particularly difficult. Matthew's interests in the medical field had been piqued when he was experimenting with microscopes in elementary school. After that, things like biology, chemistry, and anatomy were easy to understand for the Canadian.

If anything, the amount of work established by the online professors was the cause of his stress. Along with the immense pressure to keep his GPA at a 4.0, as to maintain his online scholarship at Hetalia University.

_**Then again, Hetalia University is very prestigious school**_, Matthew mused as he typed away on his research paper, the university website, along with a few internet tabs dedicated to references and fact-finding, visible in the upper left corner of his computer screen. _**It makes sense that the professors would take their jobs seriously and pile on the work to prepare us for real-world jobs and situations.**_

Even though the institution was founded a few years ago by Romulus Vargas (a middle-aged Italian man who made his fortune in the oil industry), it had already become one of the most distinguished schools in the world. The key to its success was probably because there's no physical campus, instead based entirely through the internet, allowing pupils from various parts of the Earth to attend and connect with other pupils without leaving the confines of their own homes.

In an age where technology has been integrated into everyday life, Hetalia University embodies the future of ideal educational facilities.

The only flaw in the system is how hard it is to be accepted into the school.

Unlike other schools where money comes first and intelligence comes as a close second, Hetalia University accepts only the best and brightest of its many applicants, regardless of wealth or influence.

However, what with the campus being located on the internet instead of being embodied as a physical campus, it's pointless to try applying for any form of sports' scholarship or the like, given, as mentioned before, the school is accessible entirely through the internet instead of being embodied as a physical location, therefore limiting the amount of scholarships one can attain.

So, on the day in which Matthew opened up his email account and saw a message telling him he was accepted into the university (even though he actually submitted his application as a dare from his American twin, Alfred), the bespectacled blonde considered himself extremely lucky.

After a few hours of typing, researching, crying, with the occasional Red Bull to keep him awake, he finally saved his paper on Microsoft (once, twice, three times), deciding to send it to his professor via-email when he was mentally stable and not surviving off the sugar-high one receives from energy drinks.

A sigh of content escaped from his mouth, replaced by a groan when he glanced at the clock on his laptop and saw it was six in the morning, and his medical-assistant-job at the hospital started at seven.

The Canadian then proceeded to face-plant into his keyboard once again, spending the next few moments staring into the miniscule spaces between each key. He glanced up wearily from the keys and smothered a laugh when seeing his three-times-saved medical paper now read _'the dorsal surface of the medulla oblongata is formed by the fouryuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhtgyhuik'._

"Lack of sleep never bothered me, anyway," Matthew sang lightly (delirious due to exhaustion) in a 'Let it Go' fashion, closing out of Microsoft and checking the assignment-section of his other classes to see if he missed anything else.

_*Recent Update*_

_ Check your email accounts for the latest project._

He groaned again, ruffling his hair (going out of his way to avoid touching the strange curl that kept hanging in his face all the time, since it made him feel weird when he touched it) in aggravation. "What could they want now? I don't have enough Red Bull to attempt another all-nighter!"

After a few minutes of silent fuming, he created another tab and opened up his email account to see what the latest assignment was.

He couldn't help but be surprised at how recently he had been sent the task, considering it had been sent a few minutes prior to his discovery.

_To: Matthew Williams_

_From: Hetalia University Staff_

_Subject: Foreign-Relations Program._

_ Dear sir/ma'am,_

_ As you are well-aware of, the purpose of Hetalia University is to broaden the horizons of pupils located overseas, along with encouraging peace and worldwide exchange for the next generation. _

_ However, a recent survey showed that 75% of Hetalia University students do not interact with their peers outside of the online classrooms through email or any other means of communication, therefore inhibiting international exchange._

_ To encourage foreign contact, Headmaster Romulus Vargas has required that each student is given a Skype account and assigned to another student in a different country._

_ Your Skype account login information is enclosed in the attached document, along with the username of your partner. _

_ Sincerely,_

_ Hetalia University Staff._

Matthew sighed, glancing over the email a few times.

'_**Sir/ma'am'? Should I be offended by that?**_

He closed his laptop shut and unplugged the power cord. He rubbed at his eyes, only now realizing how tired he actually was.

"I'll set an alarm for six-thirty. That gives me a little bit of time…" He whispered, setting up his phone as to ensure it would wake him at the specified time.

When the deed was done, he promptly collapsed with his glasses askew on his face and surrounded by energy-drink cans.

* * *

Author's Note: So that's chapter one~! Sorry if I made Matthew OOC or if I painted an inaccurate picture of how online universities work. I don't really know how they work, but I tried to make it seem realistic. If any of you readers do attend an online university (or take online classes for that matter) please feel free to comment about how they actually work so that I can revise and edit. As for Matthew's career choice, I can picture him being in the medical field. Though I picture him being in more of a lab-setting as opposed to a hospital setting. Sorry that I spent so much time focusing on what Matthew wants to do, I figured that it would make him more realistic and, since this is a college AU, it would be a major thing to know about him.

Here's some tidbits of information to clarify:

*A Bachelor's degree is the standard college degree, earned from four years of work and education. There's two main categories of a Bachelor's degree: a B.A (Bachelor of Arts) and a B.S (Bachelor of Science). Yes, it is actually called a B.S. And yes, when I found out, I snickered like you did just now. In Matthew's case, he's pursuing a B.S. *snickers*

*Matthew wants to be a histotechnologist. Histotechnology is the science regarding the structure of cells and their manifestation into organs and tissues. It's similar in those regards to a pathologist, which is what I wanted to be when I was four. Histotechnologists, however, focus on tissue abnormalities and treatment for those abnormalities. They require at least a B.S.

*The Medulla Oblongata is my favorite part in the human body, mainly because it's fun to say (alongside a hairy weenis. Good God, that's hilarious). It's located in the brain and is the controller of the heart and lungs, so it's extremely important.

*In this fanfiction, Hetalia University is a virtual school. It doesn't have a physical location in the real world, only an online campus. Because of that, it's kind of pointless to pursue any sport-related scholarships since it's…kind of on the internet. Therefore limiting the various scholarships you can get. You can get other scholarships like music scholarships or art scholarships (in Matthew's case, he got a regular scholarship because he did well in high school), but we'll go into that later.

Thanks for reading, I'll try to update soon. The next chapter will be in Gilbert's P.O.V, so leave a favorite, follow, or even a review if you want. I do like feedback and constructive criticism.

Until then? Stay awesome.


	2. Chapter 2

~Gilbert's point-of-view~

Gilbert saved his research paper regarding the dissolution of Prussia three times before emailing it to his professor.

The albino stretched and yawned tiredly since he had woken up a few minutes prior to finishing his report, but at least (contrary to the belief of Gilbert's younger brother, Ludwig) he didn't type up the assignment at the last minute.

Contrary to anyone-who-knew-Gilbert's belief, he was actually a very punctual student when he wanted to be. Regardless of the fact that the Beilschmidts were a wealthy family (they had made their fortune by owning business chains spread all throughout Europe) and Gilbert could have gone to any school he wanted with the writing of a single check, he decided his awesomeness levels would go over 9000 if he was a pranking, blogging, walking personification of sex who also happened to be at the top of his class.

And humble. Can't forget humble.

Thanks to his diligence throughout high school, it was only a few weeks after graduation that he received a fateful notice in his email account from a sender only labeled as 'Hetalia University Staff'.

And on that day, contrary to the belief of everyone present in the Beilschmidt household, Gilbert did not scream like a little girl and fist-pump the air so hard he nearly broke the ceiling.

From that day forth, he regarded himself as a pranking, blogging, humble, walking personification of sex who was at the top of his class in high school and was accepted into the Hetalia University. As in, one of the most impressive educational facilities in the world.

Not like he doubted himself, of course. Typical of the awesome Gilbert Beilschmidt to be one of the few students to be accepted. He's just that awesome.

The moment he heard the news of his acceptance (and bandaged his hand since it did not almost crack against a drywall ceiling), he immediately made a decision of what he wanted to major in.

Hence the paper he just finished saving (not once, not twice, but three times) and emailed to his online professor.

Unlike Ludwig, who wanted to take over the Beilschmidt company and establish a new level of wealth upon the family, Gilbert wanted to become an online professor at Hetalia University to teach upcoming generations of the awesomeness that is the former country of Prussia.

His interest in Prussia had been piqued when he was a young child reading through the Beilschmidt family tree, and had stumbled upon the fact that his mother's father (and all of his family) had come from Prussia, dating all the way back to the Teutonic Knights.

In order to honor his mother's family (his mother had passed away shortly after Ludwig's birth), he declared himself a Prussian, and went out of his way to inform people that yes, the country existed, yes, it's possible to be a self-proclaimed member of a country that dissolved, and yes, Prussia is not Russia.

He glanced over at the digital clock on his laptop, grimacing when realizing it was two in the afternoon.

"Damn, I woke up early," He mumbled distastefully, running a hand through his messy white hair. "So not awesome."

_**Maybe Toni and Franny are online?**_ Gilbert thought, opening up a new tab on his laptop and going to his blog, where he had created a specialized chat room reserved only for the friends he met at Hetalia University, which included Francis Bonnefoy (a French classmate who wanted to major in confectionaries), and Antonio Fernández Carriedo (a Spanish classmate who wanted to major in tomato agriculture, if that was even a real thing).

_ *Awesome_Prussian_Ninja joined the chat room*_

_ Vive-la-France: Ah, Gilbert, mon ami, we were just talking about you~_

_ Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: Of course you were, I am awesome!_

_ YourSpanishLover: Fusososo, that's true, but we were wondering who you had gotten for a Skype partner._

Gilbert frowned for a moment. _**Skype partner? Did I miss out on something awesome?**_

_Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: What do you mean by Skype Partner?_

_ Vive-la-France: For the school-wide project, of course~ You really didn't know?_

_ YourSpanishLover: They might not have sent you the email, yet._

_ Vive-la-France: The time difference from Paris to Berlin isn't that far~_

_ Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: What's with the ~?_

_ Vive-la-France: Just imagine me purring in your ear, ohonhonhon~_

_ YourSpanishLover: I went on Skype and found my partner. Dios mio, he's like a little tomato~! And he's majoring in the same field as me~!_

_ Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: No pun intended, since you want to major in tomato agriculture, Toni. ;)_

_ YourSpanishLover: Fusoso, though he has a colorful vocabulary._

_Vive-la-France: I met my partner earlier today~ Mon lapin has the most atrocious caterpillars on his face~_

_ Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: What, like a moustache?_

_ Vive-la-France: Eyebrows._

Gilbert cringed at the mental image.

_Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: I hope my partner doesn't have that._

_ YourSpanishLover: You won't know until you find out, mi amigo._

_ Vive-la-France: Ohonhonhon~ It could be a beautiful woman, no~?_

_ YourSpanishLover: Or a feisty Italian boy._

_Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: Or a sissy Austrian or bat-shit insane Hungarian._

_YourSpanishLover: That was one time._

_Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: One time too many. She nearly broke her laptop trying to kill me with her frying pan! _

_Vive-la-France: I doubt the same thing will happen twice~_

_Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: I think your ~ button is broken, Franny._

_YourSpanishLover: Just try to imagine him purring in your ear._

Gilbert couldn't help but laugh his hiss-like laugh. He went off and created a new tab dedicated to his email account, and found a recent message from the Hetalia University Staff.

_To: Gilbert Beilschmidt_

_From: Hetalia University Staff_

_Subject: Foreign-Relations Program._

_Dear sir/ma'am,_

_As you are well-aware of, the purpose of Hetalia University is to broaden the horizons of pupils located overseas, along with encouraging peace and worldwide exchange for the next generation. _

_However, a recent survey showed that 75% of Hetalia University students do not interact with their peers outside of the online classrooms through email or any other means of communication, therefore inhibiting international exchange._

_To encourage foreign contact, Headmaster Romulus Vargas has required that each student is given a Skype account and assigned to another student in a different country._

_Your Skype account login information is enclosed in the attached document, along with the username of your partner. _

_Sincerely,_

_Hetalia University Staff._

Gilbert clicked the attached document and grimaced at the sight of his Skype username. 'GilbertBeilschmidtGermanyHetaliaU'? Too generic. And he's a Prussian, dammit! He decided to change it to something more awesome later.

_Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: Mine's name is Matthew Williams, from Canada._

_Vive-la-France: Mon petite Mathieu~!_

_Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: You know him?_

_Vive-la-France: He's my cousin~_

_Awesome_Prussian_Ninja: Another Francy-pants?_

_YourSpanishLover: Hang in there, amigo._

_Vive-la-France: You all wound me~ :(_

After a few hours of talking with Francis and Antonio, Gilbert logged off his chat room and signed onto Skype (changing his username to 'Awesome_Prussian_Ninja', of course). He did some research and found out there was a six-hour time difference between Canada and Germany

_**Scheiße. That'll make it hard to talk to him.**_

He glanced over at the previous comments from Francis and Antonio, reading their descriptions of their partners. Omitting a sigh of discontent, he felt nervous.

_**Nervous? Why should I feel nervous? I'm awesome!**_

With that thought in his mind, he decided to loiter around on the internet until it was 11 at night in Berlin, making it five in the afternoon in Toronto, right?

Ignoring how badly his hands had begun to shake on his wireless mouse, he spent a few minutes dedicated to cleaning up the backdrop of his room, changing his shirt into one with a Prussian eagle on it, and raking through his hair some more.

Satisfied with his awesome(r) appearance, Gilbert went on Skype, found his partner already online, and opened up the video chat.

"Guten tag, mein birdie."

* * *

Author's Note: TO BE CONTINUED IN THE NEXT CHAPTER, MUAHAHAHA~!

Seriously, though, I had a slight writer's block with this chapter for the past few days, but for some reason I was able to type today so…yeah. A lot of information in this chapter, eh? It was surprisingly easy for me to type in Gilbert's P.O.V, and it was hilarious for me to type in Francis's…keep moving forward, Francis~!

I absolutely love the usernames listed in this chapter. I really do. Also, I'm sorry if the time differences between Berlin and Toronto are inaccurate, but please mention it if I got it wrong.

As for the last chapter, for some reason, it wasn't updating properly. For Matthew's email, I kept putting 'To: Matthew Williams, From: Hetalia University Staff', but it just won't show up. Sorry for all that confusion.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I'll try to update soon. I don't think I need to put a translation sheet at the bottom since practically every BTT fanfiction uses at least one of those phrases.

Regardless, feel free to favorite, follow, or review if you want. I do love constructive criticism.

Until then? Stay awesome.


	3. Chapter 3

Holy crap, this story's been published for less than a month, but it already has 24 follows? Awesome! Thanks for all the support and positive reviews, I really appreciate it!

Regular font indicates the present.

_Italic font indicates writing and/or typing._

_**Bold italic font indicates thought**_

* * *

~Matthew's point-of-view~

"The whole damn world is just as obsessed with who's the best dressed and who's having sex, who's got the money, who gets the honeys, who's kind of cute and who's just a mess-"

Matthew jumped when hearing the message tone, nearly scattering patient health charts all over his desk considering a hospital was supposed to be a quiet setting, and he could have sworn he set his message tone to the soft sound of a piano instead of Bowling for Soup's 'High School Never Ends' last time he checked.

_**Alfred must have changed my text-message sound again,**_ He thought, unlocking his phone with a slide of his index finger, mentally apologizing to the (now startled) people waiting in the hospital lobby. _**Even though he's doing acting work and staying at a hotel in downtown Toronto, he keeps barging into my apartment and changing everything around while I'm out of my apartment.**_

While Matthew could handle the (sometimes insane) antics of his American brother, there were times when he couldn't even believe they were related! Alfred was energetic, loud, and always the center of attention, while Matthew was calm, quiet, and a wallflower at all events (except for hockey games, where he'd undergo a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde-esque transformation and become a beast).

_**Technically, we're half-brothers,**_ Matthew thought, his eyes glazing over the message, his brain not registering what it said. _**But we still share some blood.**_

From what little information Matthew knew, both he and Alfred shared the same father, yet had separate mothers since their father was a notorious playboy. Matthew was born in Canada on July 1st to Madeline Williams, and Alfred was born three days later in America to Amelia Jones.

Regardless of their differing maternal figures, the two remained in contact through phone calls and annual half-way visits across the border throughout the first seventeen years of their lives.

_**But those visits didn't last forever,**_ He thought grimly, biting his lip as he continued to file out the health charts of patients, blowing a few stubborn strands of blonde hair out of his face as he worked. _**Alfred went off to California to pursue acting shortly after graduating, and mom…**_

Just the thought of his mother made Matthew's features soften. Madeline, being a single mom who didn't finish college, worked hard all the time to ensure her only son got along further and easier in life than she did. She was kind and soft-spoken, a diligent and hard worker, yet she was also very frail and prone to illness given her delicate frame and tendency to overwork herself.

"You shouldn't be staying home from school to take care of me, honey," She'd say whenever forced by her son to rest in bed, her voice somehow more light and whispery than Matthew's. "Make sure to do well in school so you can go to college and take care of me when I'm old." She'd always joke in spite of how horrible she was feeling, always trying to lighten up his spirits even when hers were low.

Matthew shook his head, derailing his current train-of-thought before it went through a dark tunnel. He re-read the message from Alfred a few times, unsure if he was really serious about what he sent:

_Wat up bro? im at your house&talking on skype ;) _

Matthew groaned, immediately setting aside his paperwork and grabbing his coat. Considering he stayed overtime at the hospital the night before, his boss was alright with him leaving early for the day, making Matthew eternally grateful since nothing good ever happens when Alfred goes on Skype.

_**The last time he went on there, he got into a major argument with a man from Cuba,**_ The Canadian thought, grimacing when recalling the event. _**I logged onto his account to apologize, but the guy thought I was Alfred and threatened to castrate me!**_

Thankfully, his apartment was only a few blocks away from the hospital, so it wasn't long before he ran up several flights of stairs, removed his keys from his jacket pocket and jammed them into the lock. After a minute of mental cursing and seemingly-futile attempts at twisting the doorknob open, he managed to get through the door, closing it and dashing toward his bedroom to prevent his twin from possibly causing World War Three.

"Alfred! I thought you were working on a movie, downtown!" He whisper-yelled, catching his sibling off-guard and causing the American to nearly drop Matthew's laptop (affectionately dubbed 'Maple Leaf', after the Canadian hockey team, the Toronto Maple Leaves), his sky-blue eyes wide with surprise.

"Damn, Matt, I literally sent that message five minutes ago," Alfred responded, tentatively backing away from his Northern twin and blocking Matthew's view of his hockey stick collection, since nothing good ever happens when Matthew is pissed off and his hockey stick collection is in view. "I finished work a few hours ago and decided to drop by. Isn't your work like, twenty blocks away? Isn't this apartment on the fifth floor?"

"Are you on my Skype account?" The older blonde interrogated, slightly out of breath given he just ran twenty blocks and up five flights of stairs in five minutes. Whatever blood still present in his face drained when the younger blonde nodded.

"Oh no, who'd you talk to now? If it's Carlos again, I swear I'll-" He began, abruptly stopping when his Southern twin turned the laptop in his direction, showing his visitor wasn't an angry Cuban, but an amused-looking albino.

"You'll do what?" The stranger smirked, resting his hand on his cheek. "Just go on and do whatever you were planning on doing. Seriously, pretend I'm not here."

"No way, man! Matt, pretend he's here, and don't kill me!" Alfred pleaded, ignoring the hiss-like laugh that protruded from the computer's webcam, getting on his knees and looking up at Matthew with big puppy eyes.

The computer-laughter increased tenfold when Matthew proceeded to tap his chin in a thinking motion, as if considering not sparing his brother's life.

"Seriously, Matt, you'll have a witness if you murder me! Tell him, Gilbert!" The American begged, turning to the albino on Skype who wore an expression of fake-horror.

"Don't drag me into this! I'm too awesome for witness protection!" The albino, apparently named Gilbert, exclaimed, his hands up in surrender, unable to stop a grin from rising amongst his pale features.

"Curse you and your puppy eyes, Al." Matthew pretend-sighed, lowering his arms and letting them fall against his sides. "But enough with harassing people on Skype, or I won't be as merciful." He stated in a melodramatic manner, mentally cringing since it sounded like something out of an old Mob movie.

Alfred nodded quickly, standing up and dashing out of the room before his brother changed his mind, shouting something along the lines of 'Kay, gotta go, bye Matt!', leaving the blonde and the albino to themselves.

"…So are you like, a Canadian mobster or…?" Gilbert asked, edging away from his laptop with a fair eyebrow raised.

Matthew laughed. "Yep. I sell illegal maple syrup on the black market, eh?" He teased, grabbing his laptop and sitting on the edge of his bed. "What about you?" He glanced down at Gilbert's username. "'Awesome_Prussian_Ninja?' Are you actually a German mobster?"

"Prussian mobster, mind you," He replied, crossing his arms over his chest, his smirk never leaving his face. "I export awesomeness on the black market, all over the world-hey! Why are you laughing?" He interrogated, observing the blonde as he doubled over in laughter.

"N-no reason," Matthew managed to say, removing his glasses and wiping at his eyes. "So whatever awesomeness I have is made in Gilbert?"

"…Well don't say it like that," Gilbert said, raising both his eyebrows in mock-flirtation. "Makes me sound like a pervert"

"You are one, aren't you?" The Canadian pointed out, he now being the one to raise both eyebrows.

Gilbert laughed his strange laugh again. "Of course, but I didn't want to seem obvious!" He 'kesese'd, causing Matthew to facepalm with fits of laughter. "By the way," The albino began, leaning towards the camera with a look intending to be sexy. "What are you wearing~?"

Matthew struggled to keep a straight face. He held his laptop above his neck to prevent Gilbert from looking downwards. "Guess."

"…A bright pink thong, with lots of glitter?"

"No."

"You strike me as that type. How about a French-maid outfit?"

"No."

"A big chicken suit?"

"Tempting, but no."

"Nothing but a maple leaf to cover your vital regions, that's my final answer."

"God no, who do you think I'm like?"

"My French friend, Francis. Are you related to him by any chance?"

Matthew's violet orbs widened in surprise behind his glasses. "Francis Bonnefoy?" He wondered out loud. _**Is the world possibly that small?**_

Gilbert nodded. "The one and only. He goes to Hetalia University, like me. Majoring in baking and all that scheiße. I'm majoring in history, what about you?"

Matthew shrugged. "Histotechnology."

"Gesundheit," Gilbert joked, lying on his stomach with his head propped on his elbows. "What's that?"

"Medical science. I'm pursuing a B.S." Matthew admitted, turning red when Gilbert started laughing again. "Not that kind of B.S!"

"I-I can't help it," He gasped, his speech muffled since his head fell forward onto his blankets given how hard he was laughing. "So you won't take anything but B.S, huh?" He grinned, his head back up, his ruby-red orbs half-lidded by ashen eyelashes.

"Nothing but B.S," Matthew replied, deciding to humor him, cracking a smile when Gilbert's head went back to being smothered by blankets.

"Anyway, I've got to get going," Gilbert mentioned as he yawned a few hours later. "It's two in the morning over here in Berlin. Six hour time difference has to be an unawesome bitch, I know."

Matthew sighed, wondering if his Skype partner was going to forget about him or confuse him for Alfred, like other people in the past. "Can I talk to you tomorrow?"

"Can't hold out from my awesomeness for too long, huh Birdie?" He remarked, winking teasingly towards the bespectacled blonde. "Can't say I blame you. I'm just that awesome. Ja, I'll talk to you tomorrow. Gute nacht, mein Birdie."

"Good night, Gilbert."

* * *

Author's Note: I admit, it was almost too much fun for me to type out this chapter. I can picture Matt as the type to be shy and quiet around most people, but is surprisingly sarcastic and hilarious when you get to know him.

My favorite part to type was the bit with the failed attempt at phone sex on a Skype call. (In case anyone was curious, Matthew was wearing jeans and a T-shirt, and a lab coat since he works at a hospital. So maybe he could have pretended to be a sexy doctor…?)

Anyway, thanks for all the positive feedback and support. I'll try to update soon, but leave a favorite, follow, or review if you want. It helps out a lot and I do like constructive criticism.

Until then? Stay awesome.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: I LIVEEEEEEEEEE! Sorry for the lack of updating, writer's block is my arch-nemesis. Bizarrely, I have this three-chapter curse for the fanfictions I write; if I write a fanfiction, I generally get three chapters of it out before I lose momentum and put it on temporary hiatus. The only exception to that rule so far has been my other PruCan fanfiction, 'Their Story'. So, by writing this chapter, you'll hopefully be seeing a lot more updates ;)

* * *

Regular font indicates the present.

_Italic font indicates writing and/or typing._

_**Bold italic font indicates thought **_

~Gilbert's point-of-view~

Gilbert Beilschmidt was dreaming of baby chicks and maple syrup when Ludwig opened the windows, allowing blinding white light to seep into his room and nearly burn off his older brother's eyelids in the process.

Gilbert let lose a string of German profanities as he rolled over, burying his head beneath his pillows to preserve his sleepiness, only to groan when his younger brother ripped the covers off his bed.

"The light! It burnnnssssss!" The albino hissed, finally forcing his eyes open so that he could glare at his sibling. "What the hell was that for, West?" Gilbert rasped, rubbing his temples to stave off an oncoming headache.

"It's nearly five in the afternoon, East." Ludwig deadpanned, Gilbert's black-and-white blanket tossed on one of his broad shoulders, raising a light eyebrow when his older brother gasped.

"Why do I keep waking up so early?" The albino wondered out loud, ignoring the sound of Ludwig's palm colliding against his forehead in exasperation, as the self-proclaimed Prussian stood up and closed the curtains.

"This isn't healthy, bruder," Ludwig began, placing the blanket back on the bed in an orderly fashion, averting his gaze as his sibling stripped off his shirt and rushed to the bathroom connected to his room. "You've been falling asleep and waking up at indecent times for the past three days," He informed, standing upright when he finished making the bed. "Well, times somehow more indecent than before. What have you been doing?"

"I've actually been doing my homework," Gilbert replied as he took off his clothes and stepped into the shower, the warm water easing the tense muscles in his back. "I got a Skype partner a few days ago."

"Skype partner? What kind of assignment requires that?" The blonde questioned through the door, leaning against a wall with his hands in his pockets.

"It's not technically an assignment, it's more of an extra-curricular activity," The albino acknowledged as he began his usual shower routine. "The main purpose of the school is to connect people from different countries, you know? But the board thought that everyone wasn't hanging out enough, so they assigned each student someone from a different country to talk to through Skype."

"That's odd," Ludwig remarked, eyeing his brother's room with distaste given how messy it had become in the span of three days, what with the clothes piling up in the corner, papers varying from famous Prussian leaders to mindless doodles strewn all over the floor, and the tower of empty Red Bull cans stacked precariously at the edge of the bed. "You actually know what extra-curricular means."

Gilbert snorted in response to Ludwig's statement as he stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist, using a small hand-towel to dry his white hair. "Good to know you have faith in my intelligence. Anyway, my partner's pretty awesome (not as awesome as me, of course). He's from Canada, his name's Matthew Williams."

"Canada? Isn't the time difference about six hours behind us?" The younger Beilschmidt wondered out loud, doing the math in his mind. "Assuming you've been getting eight hours of sleep per night, and you've been waking up around five for the past few days…you've been going to bed around nine in the morning, East."

A low whistle resounded from the bathroom, followed by a 'Damn, that's impressive'.

"This isn't funny, Gilbert," Ludwig reprimanded when the albino stepped out of the bathroom fully-dressed, his muscular arms crossing over his equally-muscular chest with disapproval. "Regardless of the fact you're taking online classes, you should still maintain a proper sleeping schedule."

"You sound like that sissy Austrian I met on Omegle," Gilbert said with a roll of his crimson eyes, tossing his towels into the pile of dirty clothes, opening the door to his bedroom and heading downstairs to eat.

Ludwig followed his elder sibling. "Roderich knew what he was talking about-"

"'Sit up straight, you're not doing your spine any favors'," Gilbert quoted in a snobbish stereotypical German accent. "'I shall now show my utter disgust and anger with you through the piano', 'patch up that dirty underwear lurking in the corner, if Franz Joseph I saw your room he'd die in a fit of fury at your unadulterated wastefulness'-"

Ludwig couldn't help but shudder given the last statement, eventually sighing as it was obvious his brother refused to listen to reason (_**A mind-boggling shock, I know,**_ The German thought sarcastically). "Just keep your health in mind as you take part in this project, bruder." The blonde reminded, heading upstairs to his own room.

"Ja, ja," Gilbert said, grabbing some food (_**wurst and beer, the breakfast of champions**_) and trailing back to his bedroom. His crimson orbs scanned across the room after he set down his edible items, a miniscule amount of guilt residing in his conscience at the thought of worrying Ludwig. In spite of his seemingly-carefree/careless personality, he did care a lot for him and felt bad when West fretted over him. He was the older sibling, dammit! Older siblings should take care of younger ones, not the other way around!

A minute of silence passed, and he shrugged. "…Might as well be awesome and clean this place up. Typical of the awesome me," He mumbled, grabbing a trash bag and getting to work on the place. With the exception of the aforementioned clothes pile, history reports/mindless doodles, and the tower of energy-drink cans (he didn't throw that thing away; damned tower took ages to build without toppling over), the room was easy to clean, so it wasn't long before he sat down on the edge of his black-and-white themed bed, his laptop propped on one knee with the plate of wursts on the other, his wireless mouse already prepped to click on the Skype logo as Matthew was online (though it could have been Alfred again for all he knew).

Gilbert paused before clicking, glancing back at the time. The time, 5:23 P.M on a Saturday, stared back at him, the white light glinting faintly within his red eyes. He tore his gaze away shortly thereafter, grabbing his phone and setting an alarm for a decent time that he could stop talking and go to sleep.

Satisfied with the alarm he set (six hours from then, allowing him plenty of time to talk to Matthew), he turned back and clicked the Skype logo.

"Guten morgen to you, mein birdie."

* * *

Author's Note: AHAHAHA, IN YOUR FACE, WRITER'S BLOCK! *does a little dance* Anyway, sorry that chapter was kind of long and boring, but I wanted to have some brotherly interaction between Gilbert and Ludwig since it would deepen their character developments and add insight in regards to their relationship. Not to mention that I wanted to add insight to the way they live, since the last chapter focused more on the American brother's relationship/way of life than it did on other things…I also apologize on the lack of Canada in this chapter, though I did add in some Austria. I freakin' love those quotes Gilbert used from him earlier.

As for the chapter, this takes place three days after Gilbert and Matthew's initial Skype meeting. The meeting, in case you were wondering, took place on Wednesday/Thursday (their differing time-zones make it kind of confusing to keep track of), so this chapter takes place on a Saturday. Since Germany's ahead of Canada by six hours, that means it was about eleven A.M in Canada when this chapter ended, which is why Gilbert says 'guten morgen' to him even though, where he is, it's the afternoon/early evening. The reason Gilbert addresses Ludwig as West and Ludwig to Gilbert as East is because the sun rises in the East and sets in the West, and since Gilbert's the older sibling and Ludwig's the younger…yeah, you get the gist of it. I'm rambling again, I do that a lot.

Regardless, you can expect more updates since I've beaten the three-chapter rule. Make sure to favorite/follow and even leave a review if you want, since I do love constructive criticism.

Until then? Stay awesome.


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